A K MATHUR

The landlady sought eviction of the tenants under Section 21(1)(a) of the U.P. Urban Buildings (Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction) Act, 1972, claiming she needed the premises to run tuition classes to augment her meagre pension. The prescribed authority rejected the application, but the appellate authority and t…

The appellant, a commission agent dealing in areca nuts, regularly advanced money to the respondent, a supplier, to ensure a steady supply of nuts, charging interest at 18% per annum. When the respondent failed to repay, the appellant sued for recovery. The respondent contended that the appellant was a money‑lender und…

The appellant, a blind man, applied for a Class‑III post in the Bulandshahr Judgeship in 1992 but was not selected. He filed a writ petition invoking the Uttar Pradesh Government Order dated 26‑08‑1993, which reserves 2% of posts for physically handicapped persons. The High Court initially ordered his appointment, whic…

Surinder Singh was appointed as an Extra-Departmental Delivery Agent (EDDA) through an open selection conducted under the Government of India's circular dated 12.03.1993, which required a minimum qualification of 8th standard and gave preference to candidates with Matriculation, but no preference to qualifications high…

The appellant, Yedla Srinivasa Rao, repeatedly promised to marry a girl aged between 15 and 16 years, forcibly had sexual intercourse with her, and continued the liaison even after she became pregnant, later refusing to marry her and absconding. The girl reported the matter to the village Panchayat and the police, lead…

Amarjit Singh Sahni, a cashier‑clerk of Punjab and Sind Bank, applied for voluntary retirement under the bank's scheme (effective 1‑31 Dec 2000) but withdrew his application on 22 Dec 2000 before the bank had accepted it. The bank later treated him as relieved from service on 28 Jan 2001 and denied his reinstatement, d…

The parties entered into a power plant contract, after which the respondent (Siemens) claimed compensation for delays and the appellant (NTPC) filed a counter‑claim. The arbitral tribunal, relying on a Minutes of Meeting that settled many issues, dismissed most of the counter‑claims as settled or barred by limitation, …

The State of Arunachal Pradesh entered a contract for road bridge construction with M/s Damini Construction, which later refused payment, leading to arbitration. An interim award dated 12‑10‑2003 was issued, which the State later sought to review by letter on 02‑04‑2004; the arbitrator replied on 10‑04‑2004 that he had…

The Supreme Court examined whether the Wakf Act, 1995 barred civil courts from hearing a suit and its appeal that were filed before the Act came into force on 1 January 1996. The appellant Sardar Khan had filed a suit in 1976, which was dismissed in 1996, and the respondents appealed to the High Court, invoking Section…

The Supreme Court examined an appeal by the daughters and a granddaughter of Padmayya Kambali challenging a will dated 28‑03‑1976 that bequeathed certain properties to the testator's two sons. The appellants argued that the will was not duly executed, citing the testator's advanced age, his death within 15 days of exec…

The plaintiff filed a suit for declaration of title and possession of a residential property, which the trial court decreed in his favour. The defendant appealed and the first appellate court set aside the decree, holding that the defendant had acquired title by adverse possession. The plaintiff then filed a second app…

The landlord, Janak Raj, filed a suit for eviction against his tenant, Paradeep Kumar, under the Jammu & Kashmir Houses and Shops Rent Control Act, 1966. The tenant had failed to pay rent for the period January 1984 to January 1985, making a partial payment of Rs.6,000 against a due of Rs.6,500, and subsequently defaul…

The case involved a lease dated 13 January 1969 for 21 years between the appellants (lessors) and the respondent (lessee) which contained a clause allowing either party to terminate the lease before its expiry. The lessor served a notice of determination in 1972 and obtained an eviction decree under the Transfer of Pro…

Lal Saij Khunte was elected to the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly but his election was challenged on the ground that he had been convicted under IPC sections 420, 34 and 468 and sentenced to two years' rigorous imprisonment, which under Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 disqualifies a person…

The deceased employee of Hanuman Plantation Ltd. died in an accident at Nagaon. His parents, who had moved to Tezpur after his death, filed a compensation claim under the Workmen's Compensation Act before the Commissioner, Tezpur, which awarded Rs. 2.70 lakh. The company appealed, arguing that the Tezpur Commissioner l…

Umesh Challiyil filed an election petition under the Representation of the People Act, 1951 alleging corrupt practices by the elected candidate K.P. Rajendran. The Kerala High Court dismissed the petition on preliminary objections, holding that the verification in the petition and the affirmation in the supporting affi…

The Supreme Court heard a civil appeal (No. 5979 of 2001) against an interlocutory order of the Bombay High Court that had granted ad‑hoc approval to certain teachers appointed by Dayanand Vedic Vidyalaya, despite the Education Inspector’s rejection of those appointments on the ground of rule violations. The Court held…

The State of Punjab appealed against orders of the Trial Court and the Punjab & Haryana High Court that had directed daily‑wage tractor drivers to be placed on the same pay scale as regularly appointed drivers on the basis of equal pay for equal work. The Supreme Court examined whether the principle of equal pay applie…

Dinesh Dalmia was arrested in a CBI case and placed in judicial custody in Chennai. He voluntarily surrendered before the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Egmore, on 27 February 2006, seeking production before the Calcutta court where two other cases (Nos. 300/2002 and 476/2002) were pending. He was produced befor…

The appellant applied in 1996 for a quarry lease under Rule 39 of the Tamil Nadu Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1959. The High Court directed the State to decide the application within four weeks, but the rule was repealed on 27 June 1996 and the application was rejected on 8 October 1996. The appellant waited until A…

The Nadia District Primary School Council prepared a 1980 panel of 1,965 candidates for primary teacher appointments, but only 600 were trained as required by Rule 3(d) of the recruitment rules. Several writ petitions were filed by candidates excluded from the panel. The High Court, relying on earlier orders that were …

The Supreme Court examined the meaning of "close proximity" in sub‑rule (4) of Rule 5 of the Uttar Pradesh Number and Location of Excise Shop Rules, 1968, after a Lucknow High Court had held that it meant a distance of about 100 metres (300 ft) and ordered the immediate closure of liquor shops within that radius withou…

The respondent, an incumbent employee, was granted a retrospective promotion effective 27 August 1984 and claimed arrears of pay and allowances for the period up to 5 February 1992. The Central Administrative Tribunal and the Delhi High Court allowed the claim. The appellant challenged these orders before the Supreme C…

In Narpat Singh v. Rajasthan Financial Corporation, the appellant filed Interlocutory Applications (I.A.) No. 15-16 seeking clarification and direction of a court order dated 3 May 2007. The court held that such I.A.s are misconceived because they were filed after the case had been finally disposed of, and an I.A. is m…

The State of Rajasthan filed a Special Leave Petition challenging a cryptic order of the Rajasthan High Court that dismissed its application for leave to appeal against an acquittal of Chanda and others without giving reasons. The Supreme Court examined whether a High Court must pass a speaking order showing due applic…

The Drugs Inspector seized samples of Ozomen capsules and Ozomen forte, which were found to contain sildenafil citrate, an allopathic drug, in quantities ranging from 33.9 mg to 46.8 mg per capsule. The respondents, who held licences for Ayurvedic and allopathic medicines but not for manufacturing sildenafil citrate, w…

The appellant, Rajindra Singh (deceased) through his legal representatives, challenged a decree from a 1957 suit in which Prem Mai and Sudha Mai were granted declaration and possession of land. The decree was reversed on appeal, declaring the appellant a Sirdar and entitled to possession. While the suit was pending, a …

A writ petition was filed by Balakrushna Behera seeking a mandamus directing Utkal University of Culture to complete the selection and appoint him as Lecturer in South & South East Asian Studies. The High Court ordered the university to complete the selection and publish the result, which was done, but the appointment …

The Bihar Veterinary Association filed a writ petition seeking to have veterinarians employed in the Bihar Animal Husbandry Service placed on the same pay scale (Rs 8,000‑13,500) as the Indian Veterinary Service, arguing that the Fitment Committee had erred by recommending a lower scale of Rs 6,500‑10,500. The Patna Hi…

The Rajasthan Zilla Parishad advertised vacancies for Teacher Grade‑III posts in 1996 based on a circular that required only Secondary Examination marks. During the selection process the government issued a new circular raising the qualification to Higher Secondary and later, under Rule 296 of the Rajasthan Panchayati …

The appellant, Madhya Pradesh Rajya Sahakari Bank Maryadit, challenged a 1997 order by the Registrar of Co-operative Societies that amended recruitment rules to include reservation for SC, ST, OBC and physically handicapped persons. The High Court set aside the order as ultra vires, and the appellant appealed. The Supr…

The respondent, a peon in a private aided school, possessed the qualifications for a High School Assistant (Hindi) language teacher position that became vacant. The school appointed another candidate, prompting the respondent to seek appointment under Kerala Education Rules, 1959. The Director of Public Instructions se…

The appellants were convicted by the Andhra Pradesh High Court for causing the death of Khambam Venkatramana Reddy, based primarily on the eye‑witness testimony of the victim's wife that the accused threw a 25‑30 kg stone on the victim's head. The defence argued that the principal accused was crippled by polio and coul…

The Supreme Court examined appeals filed by teachers and staff of a proprietary school who claimed they were employees of Hindustan Copper Ltd (HCL) and Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL) and sought mandamus to compel payment of salaries and pay parity with clerks of the companies. The Court held that HCL and BCCL merely pr…

The plaintiff, Anoopi Shahani, leased premises to Ajit Sachdeva who died; his wife, Santosh Ajit Sachdeva, succeeded as tenant and allegedly sublet the premises to a company in which she held a majority of shares. The plaintiff filed an eviction suit under s.13(1)(e) of the Bombay Rents, Hotel and Lodging Houses Rates …

The Canteen Mazdoor Sabha filed a civil appeal challenging a Jharkhand High Court decision that set aside an Industrial Tribunal award granting canteen workers the same pay scales as MECON’s VIP Guest House and Tea Club employees. The core issue was whether a master‑servant (employer‑employee) relationship existed betw…

The case concerned promotion to the post of Executive Engineer (EE) in the Indian Defence Service of Engineers, which can be filled from two feeder cadres: Assistant Executive Engineers (AEEs) and Assistant Engineers (AEs). A circular dated 29 July 1997 directed that all 58 EE vacancies for 1997‑98 be filled by promoti…

The State of Andhra Pradesh amended its Police (Civil) Service Rules, 1998 to introduce an accelerated promotion scheme for Inspectors and Deputy Superintendents who performed outstanding work in anti‑extremist operations, irrespective of seniority. A group of police officers challenged the amendment as violative of Ar…

The petition concerned a kidnapping for ransom where the victim was abducted in Lucknow (U.P.), ransom demands were made in Haldwani (Uttarakhand) and the bodies were recovered in Unnao (U.P.). The FIR was lodged and investigation commenced at Haldwani. The question before the Supreme Court was which court had territor…

The Kerala High Court Division Bench referred a question of law to its Full Bench concerning the applicability of Section 11(17) of the Kerala Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act to legal heirs of a deceased tenant. The Full Bench answered the question but then proceeded to decide the civil revision petition on its …

The Supreme Court heard Civil Appeals Nos. 1062‑1065 arising from a suit filed in 1947 for Rs 7,000, which involved an attachment before judgment of the defendant's dry fish and a third‑party claim over that fish. After more than six decades of litigation, the Court, with the parties' consent, ordered that the entire p…

The Fruit Commission Agents Association challenged the rent fixed by the Agricultural Produce Market Committee for shop‑cum‑godowns at the Gaddiannaram fruit market, alleging the structures were not permanent and the rent excessive. The High Court upheld the rent fixation, finding the Committee had considered various f…

A bus with a statutory capacity of 42 passengers was overloaded with about 90 persons and met with an accident, causing 26 deaths and 63 injuries. Claimants filed compensation claims under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awarded compensation to all claimants, holding …

The Supreme Court heard two appeals arising from orders of the Punjab & Haryana High Court. In Criminal Appeal No. 1608 of 2007 the Court considered the grant of anticipatory bail to Raninder Singh and others under Section 438(2)(i) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, and clarified that the court may impose a cond…

An 18‑year‑old girl, Anita, was allegedly lured by the accused into his house and raped. The trial court convicted the accused under Section 376 read with Section 511 of the IPC, a decision affirmed in part by the High Court. On appeal, the Supreme Court examined the medical evidence and found no injuries, no semen, an…

The Supreme Court examined two questions arising from a suit for redemption of a mortgage. First, it held that the second appeal did not abate despite the death of respondent Mohd. Hussain because some of his heirs were already on record, and the only procedural step required was to note his death and adjust the partie…

The Kerala Public Service Commission published a list of 40 direct recruits for the Excise Inspector cadre, which was challenged on the ground that the ratio of direct recruitment to promotion should be limited to 25% of the total cadre strength as per Note (3) to Rule 5 of the 1958 Service Rules. The petitioners argue…

The respondent, Dilbagh Singh, a Beldar in the Public Works Department, was terminated on 25‑December‑1999. A dispute under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 was referred to the Labour Court, which held that his termination violated Sections 25‑G and 25‑H because junior employees remained in service, and ordered his re…

The Supreme Court heard two civil appeals arising from a suit for specific performance of an agreement to sell land dated 24 April 1982 for Rs.1,20,000, of which Rs.10,000 had been paid as advance. The Court held that the agreement was genuine and binding, but given the 25-year lapse and the substantial increase in pro…

The appellant, a wife, filed an FIR under Sections 498A and 406 IPC alleging dowry harassment and cruelty after leaving her matrimonial home. The husband filed a divorce petition, and the respondents moved the High Court to quash the FIR under its inherent power under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C. The High Court quashed t…

Satya Srinath, a former employee of Syndicate Bank, was absent from work due to illness and sought an extension of leave with a medical certificate. The bank deemed her to have voluntarily retired under Clause 17(a) of the Vth Bipartite Settlement and denied her pension under the Syndicate Bank (Employees') Pension Reg…

E.K. Bhaskaran Pillai, who joined the Kerala service in 1957, was promoted retrospectively effective 15 September 1961 after his juniors had been promoted, but he was not paid the arrears of salary. He filed a representation on 15 June 1972 and later O.P. No. 585 of 1975 seeking full monetary benefits from the promotio…

Uttam Vishnu Pawar, a telephone operator in the Maharashtra Irrigation Department, transferred from the Mumbai Zone to the Kolhapur Zone and lost his seniority in the new zone. He filed an application before the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal seeking that his service in the Mumbai Zone be counted towards the 12‑ye…

Mis Khandaka Jain Jewellers entered into agreements to purchase two properties in 1983, but the vendors failed to execute sale deeds. The firm obtained specific performance decrees in 1994, after which the court executed the sale deeds in 1995 and sent them for registration. The Sub‑Registrar, invoking Section 47A of t…

The appellant applied for the post of Deputy Director (Agriculture) in Pondicherry under an advertisement that required an M.Sc. in Agriculture and two years of experience in extension work/soil/Input analysis, without specifying that the experience must be after the degree. The UPSC short-listed candidates, excluding …

M/s IDL Chemicals Ltd., a manufacturer of explosives, supplied goods to Coal India Ltd.'s collieries in several states through its consignment agents. The company claimed that dispatches from its Rourkela factory to the agents were merely stock transfers and not inter‑State sales under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, …

The Union of India awarded a contract to M/s V.S. Engineering for supplying crushed stone ballast, but a dispute arose over penalties and performance. The contract’s General Conditions required the General Manager of Railways to appoint an arbitral tribunal, which was done, yet the contractor later filed an application…

Rite Approach Group Ltd, a Singapore company acting as an agent for Russian Technologies (later merged into Rosoboronexport), helped procure a contract for six helicopters for India's Border Security Force and was entitled to a 16% commission. Rosoboronexport refused to pay the commission, prompting the petitioner to f…

The petitioner, Union of India, appealed against a Kerala High Court Division Bench order that directed it to grant Swatantrata Samman Sainik (SSS) pension to the deceased M.S. Mohammed Rawther with effect from 9 September 1989. The Division Bench had reversed a Single Judge’s direction to remand the matter to the Unio…

The respondent, a shipper of sugar imported from China, purchased a marine insurance policy which was later extended for inland destinations in India upon payment of an additional premium. The sugar, stored temporarily in sheds at Calcutta port, was destroyed by fire. The insurer denied liability, arguing the extension…

The appellant, Sudarsha Avasthi, filed Election Petition No. 3 of 2002 challenging the election of Shiv Pal Singh to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council on alleged corrupt practices, including bribery to his brother and other candidates and undue influence on the Assistant Returning Officer. The petition alleged spec…

Bank of India appealed against a decision that the Debts Recovery Tribunal lacked jurisdiction over the property of Ketan Parekh, who had been declared a notified person under the Special Courts (Trial of Offences Relating to Transactions in Securities) Act, 1992. Parekh's movable and immovable assets were attached by …

The appellant filed a complaint under IPC sections 323, 406, 498A and the Dowry Prohibition Act. Several witnesses could not be examined during the trial, and the complainant later filed a supplementary list of five witnesses under Section 244(2) Cr.P.C. after the charge was framed. The Sub‑Divisional Judicial Magistra…

The respondent, a Director of the State Council for Educational Research and Training (SCERT) in Uttar Pradesh, was selected as Chairperson of the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) for a four‑year term or until age 60 under the National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993. While serving, a State Vigilan…

The respondent, a constable in the Central Reserve Police Force, was invalidated after contracting pyogenic meningitis and suffering bilateral deafness while on duty. He applied for an invalid pension but was denied on the ground that he had not completed the ten years of qualifying service required under the Central C…

The case concerned agricultural land in Pune owned by a landlord who was a minor at the tiller’s day and later attained majority. The landlord served notice to terminate the tenancy under Section 31 of the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948, but failed to commence possession proceedings under Section 29 wi…

The respondent, a Sectional Engineer with the Pune Cantonment Board, was charged with misconduct for allegedly preparing faulty estimates. An Enquiry Committee, whose three members later also sat on the Cantonment Board, found him guilty and the Board removed him from service. The respondent appealed, but the removal o…

The dispute arose from a registered Will dated 5 August 1972 that mutated property in favour of the appellants. Respondent No.1 filed a suit alleging the Will was procured by fraud; the trial court dismissed the suit and held it barred by limitation under Article 59 of the Limitation Act, 1963. The first appellate cour…

The Gram Panchayat of Haripura, claiming ownership of a parcel of land, filed an application under Sections 4 and 7 of the Punjab Public Premises (Eviction and Rent Recovery) Act, 1973 to evict respondents who were cultivating the land without a valid lease. The Collector held the respondents to be unauthorised occupan…

The Progressive Education Society appointed Rajendra as a teacher on a two‑year probation starting 9 August 1992. Before the probation period ended, the Society terminated his services on 1 August 1994, citing unsatisfactory performance and paid notice pay. Rajendra challenged the termination under the Maharashtra Empl…

Smt. Sadhana Khanna, a Central Secretariat Service employee who joined as Assistant on 13 July 1983, was omitted from the 1991 seniority‑quota promotion select list despite being senior to several officers who were promoted. The department argued she was ineligible because her appointment letter was dated 5 July 1983, …

The case concerned pension computation for railway "Running Staff" who retired before 1 January 1986. The Government issued an Office Memorandum on 10 February 1998 fixing the notional pay of pre‑1986 retirees as on that date, treating it as average emoluments for pension. A subsequent Railway Board clarification on 29…

The Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) issued a notice directing its licensees to withdraw supplementary/amended electricity bills and refund amounts collected from consumers, without conducting an investigation under Section 128 of the Electricity Act, 2003. The Appellate Tribunal set aside MERC's or…

Som Lal was elected Sarpanch of a Gram Panchayat in 2003, but his election was challenged on the ground that he was a whole‑time salaried employee of the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board, which under Section 208(g) of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 (Act 9) would disqualify him. The appellant argued that …

The Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) had inserted Note 3 in its 1967 Service Regulations, stating that candidates holding National Trade Certificate/National Apprenticeship Certificate (NTC/NAC) recruited as Helpers could not be considered for internal promotion to Junior Assistant or Typist posts. The TNEB Thozhila…

The Karnataka government constituted a Selection Committee to recommend non‑State Civil Service officers for promotion to the IAS. Unsuccessful candidates alleged that the Committee was improperly constituted, acted arbitrarily and with malafide intent, particularly pointing to the Chairman’s allotment of a residential…

The appellants, Chargemen Grade II of the Defence Research and Development Organisation, were placed in Grade IV of Category I under Rule 6(4)(a) of the DRDO Technical Cadre Recruitment Rules, 1995 because they lacked the qualifications prescribed in Schedule III. They challenged the rule as violative of Articles 14 an…

Senior Auditors in the offices of the Accountant General, Assam and Meghalaya sought pay‑scale parity with Assistants in the Central Secretariat. The Central Administrative Tribunal and the Gauhati High Court had granted the claim, but the Union of India appealed. The Supreme Court examined whether the judiciary could …

The Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India (the appellant) floated a tender for gumming and super‑calendaring of stamp base paper, which was awarded to Gandhi Industrial Corporation (the respondent). The supply order dated 31 May 1995 incorporated a clause that any MODVAT credit availed by the respondent wo…

The case concerned the promotion of Deputy Rangers/Foresters to Rangers in the Kerala Forest Subordinate Service, which required candidates to undergo Rangers training selected by the Kerala Public Service Commission (KPSC). The appellants, who were approved probationers, alleged that the KPSC had improperly included i…

The petitioners, who were directly recruited to the West Bengal State Forest Service in March 1990, challenged the grant of retrospective seniority to officers promoted in 1991 under Rule 6(2) of the West Bengal Service (Determination of Service) Rules, 1981, which made the promotees senior to the direct recruits. The …

The appellant, Rahim Bux, was convicted under Section 302 IPC for murdering his brother-in-law while chasing his brother-in-law with a sword after a quarrel. The appellant argued that he only intended to injure the brother-in-law and that the death of the brother was accidental, seeking to have the conviction altered t…

The Uttar Pradesh government acquired land for a "Transport Nagar" project to alleviate traffic congestion in the National Capital Region. Under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, it invoked Section 17(4) read with Section 5-A, dispensing with the requirement that affected persons file objections under Section 5-A. M/s Sh…

MIS. K.B. Saha & Sons Pvt. Ltd. (landlord) leased a flat to MIS. Development Consultant Ltd. (tenant) for the residential use of a named officer, Mr. Keshab Das, under a memorandum dated 30‑03‑1976. After Mr. Das vacated, the tenant sought to allot the premises to another employee, prompting the landlord to file suits …

The appellant, R.K. Shukla, obtained an allotment of a premises after the Rent Control & Eviction Officer (RC&EO) declared it vacant, despite the landlord Sudhrist Narain Anand (deceased) asserting physical occupation. The landlord challenged the allotment and the vacancy declaration in a writ petition before the Allah…

Krishnan filed a suit for declaration and injunction claiming that a mortgaged land was sold to him by Ramayee (alias Lakshmi) through registered deeds, which the defendant alleged were forged. The trial court dismissed the suit, but the first appellate court reversed the decision, holding that Ramayee and Lakshmi were…

The State Government of Andhra Pradesh granted a licence to Guntur Power and Light Ltd (GPL) to operate an electricity undertaking and transferred certain lands to it. GPL later leased portions of this land to its sister company, Guntur Tobacco Company (GTC), with an option to purchase. In 1956 the government acquired …

The petitioners were workmen appointed on an ad‑hoc basis for the Anpara‑Rihand Nagar railway construction project of Indian Railway Construction Co. Ltd. (IRCON). After the project was completed in early 1998, they were served with retrenchment notices and offered compensation under Section 25‑F of the Industrial Disp…

The Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd. granted a 33.33% hill‑development rebate on electricity charges to new industrial units in hill districts through notifications issued under Section 49 of the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948, for a period of five years. Subsequent notifications in 1998 and 1999 reduced the rebate…

The case arose from a politically motivated attack in 1995 in which Basavarajaiah was killed and four others were injured. Twenty‑three persons were tried; the trial court convicted several under Section 302 IPC read with Section 149, while others were acquitted. The High Court affirmed the murder convictions of A‑1 an…

Shiv Nath Prasad, a Scheduled Caste candidate, was appointed Assistant Engineer in Madhya Pradesh and promoted to Executive Engineer in 1980 against a reserved post. General‑category engineers, senior to him in the feeder cadre, were promoted to the same post in 1985. The State Administrative Tribunal and the Madhya Pr…

The petitioners were 34 daily‑wage employees of the Cooperative Electric Supply Society who were taken over by the U.P. State Electricity Board on 3 April 1997. They had been appointed before 4 May 1990, the cut‑off date for a Board decision dated 28 November 1996 that sought to regularise all daily‑wage employees who …

Mohd. Taherali, a police constable, failed to report for election bandobust duty on 2 September 1999 and was charged with desertion. He had earlier been found guilty of desertion on two occasions and offered no defence. The Superintendent of Police imposed compulsory retirement, which the Administrative Tribunal remitt…

Skyline Contractors and another applied for allotment of an 8,000 sq.m plot in NOIDA, paying an initial deposit of Rs.13.20 lakh. The allotment order required 25% of the premium within 60 days and the balance in ten half‑yearly instalments, with no extension unless expressly granted. The appellants failed to make any f…

The National Insurance Co. issued a motor insurance policy to the respondents that expired on 29‑06‑1994. An accident occurred on 20‑07‑1994 at 9:15 a.m., three weeks after the policy had lapsed, and the policy was renewed only at 2:00 p.m. on the same day via a Motor Renewal Endorsement. The claim petition was allowed…

The Supreme Court examined a suit filed by a construction company for specific performance of a development agreement, in which the plaintiff later sought to amend the pleadings to implead a third‑party appellant and to declare a consent decree, issued in a related earlier suit, null and void. The Court held that the a…

A lecturer on probation at Kumaon Engineering College resigned on 6 September 1993 after a student alleged indecent behaviour against him. The principal forwarded the resignation to the Board of Governors, which accepted it, waiving the notice period. The lecturer later claimed he was coerced into resigning and sought …

The appellants, Dharam, Raj Singh and Raj Kumar, along with two others, attacked the deceased Partap Singh and his family in the latter's fields using lethal weapons, resulting in the death of Partap Singh. The appellants pleaded private (self) defence, claiming they acted to protect themselves when the deceased allege…

Ramesh Kumar, an employee of the Food Corporation of India (FCI), applied for voluntary retirement under the corporation's 2002 scheme on 13 September 2004. He withdrew his application on 27 September 2004, but FCI accepted the retirement on 9 November 2004. Kumar challenged the acceptance before the Punjab and Haryana…

Madhusudhan Rao, a forester, was disciplined for alleged embezzlement of government funds. The Divisional Forest Officer imposed stoppage of increments and other penalties, which Rao appealed. The Conservator of Forests enhanced the punishment to dismissal without giving any reasons, and the Chief Conservator later red…

The appellant, the father of a deceased Army Major, alleged that his son was murdered because he had uncovered corruption, and sought a direction that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conduct a probe. The High Court dismissed the writ petition, and the appellant appealed. The Supreme Court held that a petition…

The Supreme Court examined whether Animal Driven Vehicles (ADV carts) used to transport sugarcane qualify as "agricultural implements" under a Uttar Pradesh Government Order of 20‑Nov‑1996 that provided purchase subsidies for such implements. The petitioners argued that the carts should be treated as implements, while …

The petitioners challenged the Election Commission’s order reserving three seats for Scheduled Tribes in the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, contending that under Article 332(3) of the Constitution the number of reserved seats must be proportional to the ST population, which is about 3 % of the state’s total, equatin…

The respondents, originally appointed as Mali (gardener) on daily wages, were later required to work as tractor drivers though no such post existed in the Aravali Golf Club. After being paid tractor‑driver wages, they were regularised only as Mali and filed a suit seeking regularisation as tractor drivers. The trial co…

The incident occurred on 4 November 1986 when five accused assaulted two injured witnesses and the deceased, who later died. The FIR was lodged the next day, and the key witnesses gave their testimony ten years later, leading to minor discrepancies in their accounts. The trial court acquitted all accused, citing the FI…

Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL), a Government undertaking, awarded a turnkey power plant contract to Daelim Industrial Co Ltd (DIC). During execution, DIC lodged a claim of Rs 55.8 crore covering substituted material, turbo‑technical price, counter‑vailing duty, exchange‑rate fluctuation, liquidity damages, and interest,…

Mohd. Akram Ansari contested the 2003 Delhi Legislative Assembly election and lost to Haroon Yusuf, who was then Chairman of the Delhi Wakf Board. The appellant challenged Yusuf's election on the ground that the Wakf Board chairmanship was an office of profit and that the election petition raised other issues, includin…

The State of Gujarat appealed a Gujarat High Court order that summoned the Chief Secretary and Law Secretary to appear personally because the State’s appeal was filed 25 days late, citing staff shortages in the Public Prosecutor’s office. The Supreme Court held that the High Court was unjustified in summoning senior of…

The suit involved a property mortgaged to the defendant under a deed dated 19‑03‑1980, which expressly provided that on redemption the mortgagee would revert to being the lessee of the mortgagor. A subsequent partial‑release deed dated 21‑09‑1981 gave the mortgagee a right of first option to purchase the property. The …

The respondents, cinema theatres that had elected to pay entertainment tax on a slab basis under Section 5 of the Andhra Pradesh Entertainments Tax Act, 1939, were later issued demands for differential tax after the local area in which they were situated was upgraded during the period of option. The demands were raised…

Ace Pipeline Contracts Private Ltd. entered into a pipeline contract with Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. that contained Clause 91, appointing the Director (Marketing) of BPCL or his nominee as sole arbitrator. When a dispute arose, Ace wrote to the Director requesting arbitration and asked that a retired Supreme Cou…

In Uttar Pradesh, 93 vacancies for Civil Judge (Junior Division) were to be filled with reservations as per the 1993 and 1994 Uttar Pradesh Public Service Acts. The prescribed percentages yielded 46.5 seats for the general category, which the High Court held should be rounded up to 47, and three seats reserved for free…

The wife filed a complaint in Trichy alleging offences under Sections 498‑A, 406 IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act against her husband, his relatives and the husband’s sister, Gowri Ramaswamy. The accused filed petitions under Section 482 CrPC seeking quashment on grounds of frivolous allegations, l…

Muthu, a waste‑paper merchant, was charged with murder after he stabbed Siva, a waste‑paper collector, who had thrown rubbish into Muthu's shop. The trial court convicted Muthu under Section 302 IPC and sentenced him to life imprisonment, a decision upheld by the High Court. On appeal, the Supreme Court examined whethe…

The Uttar Pradesh Jal Sansthan, created under the U.P. Water Supply and Sewerage Act, 1975, supplied water and maintained sewerage for railway colonies and stations and demanded service charges from the Railways. The Union of India contended that these charges were a tax on Union property and therefore exempt under Art…

The Wakf instituted suits for recovery of possession of certain properties, which the appellants claimed were private and barred by limitation under Article 134‑B of the Limitation Act, 1908, also pleading adverse possession. The trial court held the properties were Wakf property and barred by limitation; the first app…

The State of Karnataka auctions the right to vend arrack; the plaintiffs, experienced excise contractors, won the bids for the 1990‑91 excise year. The Finance Minister, in his budget speech, announced a policy to ban toddy sales statewide from 1 July 1990. The government later failed to fully enforce the ban, allowing…

Bharat Glass Tube Ltd. sought cancellation of Gopal Glass Works Ltd.'s design registration (Design No. 190336) on the ground that the design was not new or original, alleging prior publication in Germany and the United Kingdom. The Assistant Controller cancelled the registration, but the Calcutta High Court set aside t…

The plaintiff entered into a sale agreement with the first defendant, paid earnest money but failed to pay the balance, and filed a suit for specific performance on May 3, 1975. Two days later the first defendant sold the same property to the appellant for a higher price and gave possession. The trial court dismissed t…